Nicknamed 'whirlwind', Jimmy White has been one of the most entertaining players on the snooker circuit. In the mode of Alex 'Hurricane' Higgins, Jimmy White is renowned for his great pots and fast break-building.

2003/4 saw Jimmy White back to form and he won the Daily Record Players Championship in Glasgow in April 2004.

Crowd favourite, White has amassed over £4 million prize money and over £1 million through exhibitions and endorsements and yet not so long ago he found himself bankrupt.

In his heyday he was, as well as being the most prodigious snooker player, a hardened drinker and gambler. Jimmy White reckons he has blown £1 million gambling and about £500,000 on drink.

He regularly bet on anything going and once wagered £20,000 on a horse, whose name he now can't remember.

For a while Jimmy White's life revolved around horses, dogs, casinos and card games.

His bankruptcy had a silver lining and seems to have got him back on track. Jimmy White still goes racing and has the odd flutter but with nowhere near the same level of wager as before.

White has won many snooker titles but the world championship has been tantalisingly elusive. He has been a runner-up at the Crucible six times, including an epic 18-17 defeat to Stephen Hendry in 1994.

In March 2009, Jimmy White failed to qualify for the snooker World Championship for the third year in a row.

Jimmy White started playing snooker when he was 12, and took it seriously from the age of 14. He became the youngest ever world amateur snooker champion.

He may have lost a lot of money gambling but he was a shock winner of the second Poker Million, and was ranked 70th best English poker player.

In 2009, Jimmy White came third on I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here, in the process losing 22lbs.